Advances in technology

Technology is a broad concept that deals with a people’s usage and knowledge of tools and crafts, and how it affects man’s ability to control and adapt to its environment. In human society, technology is a consequence of science and engineering. In the last two centuries, humanity has witnessed great technological developments that are not to be paralleled with any other past times in history. These technological advances range from the invention of the light bulb to the latest wireless computers and internet devices. But what are the implications of these technological advances on our societies.

To begin with, technological advances have helped people use tools and materials that made life easier for them. To give one example, the use of the phone and the internet has made it extremely possible to communicate with any person on any other part of the world. So, the limitations in communication that we had in the past are all over by now. Academically speaking, students no longer rely today entirely on books to look for the information they need to do a research. Rather they are invited now to search the internet and get ready-made information that saves both time and effort. Spatially speaking, people managed to set their foot on the moon and discover things that were in the past only myths for many of us.

However technological advances have had also their negative sides. To illustrate to that, internet use has made the gap even greater between those who have access to it and those who don’t. Let us remember that there are those who can’t have yet access even to electricity to use all those technological advances which seem to be made mainly for those who have the means to buy it. The advances in telecommunication have also made people more selfish in the sense that everyone now has his/her mobile phone; and we no longer have family conversations or calls for the whole family. Every one holds private conversations on the phone that other can’t know about. For all these reasons, I believe that one has to look at the other side of the coin and believe that technological development is double-edged.

To conclude, and as far as I am concerned, technological advances are a major step in the development of nations and societies and it is imperative to make good use of those developments and make it accessible to all individuals in the world.